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UP&DOWN
Written by: Monika Mudranincová

PEOPLE UP

Photo: Archiv		Jakub Dadák Brain Systems, a provider of software solutions based on internet applications, was listed among the 50 fastest-growing central European firms for 2001 by Deloitte & Touche. According to its CEO, last year the firm marked a further 53% turnover rise.
Photo: ČTK		Jack Stack According to its CEO, Česká spořitelna has become the most profitable domestic bank in the first quarter of this year. With profit of more than CZK 2 billion, it has also become the most profitable domestic company overall.
Photo: Archiv		Ivan Hruška The general director of Ness CEE announced a merger of Israel-based Ness Technologies with Pittsburgh-based software company APAR Infotech. He said this union shall bring new market opportunities, particularly in the area of outsourcing.

PEOPLE DOWN

Photo: ČTK		Vladimír Špidla In only half a year, the Prime Minister lost more than half of his fans. So concluded the STEM public opinion poll, which reported that in September 2002 (when his government formed), 75% of the public trusted him, while in March 2003 that figure had dropped to 31%.
Photo: ČTK		Petr Smetka The man behind the fall of the housing project H-Systém, has heard the court's verdict sentencing him to five years in prison for the fraudulent purchase of the Prague Kriváň Hotel. The investigation of the H-Systém case is still ongoing.
Photo: ČTK		Pavel Dostál The Minister of Culture applied for a flat in the new apartment complex completed for the deputies in Nerudova street, despite the fact that he already has another state-subsidied flat. Reconstruction of this complex has cost the taxpayers a quarter billion crowns.

Photo: Vladimír Weiss

Jim B. Chang: At the crossroads of business
JIM B. CHANG (59), the general director of Foxconn CZ, the Czech branch of the international manufacturer of computers, mobile phones, and consumer electronics, spent the last 30 years in the US. One might wonder why, three years ago, he relocated to a country in central Europe that could hardly be called a computer super-power. "The Czech Republic has an ideal logistical location, it's the crossroads of Europe. Furthermore, the Czech Republic is one of the most beautiful countries I know of," Chang says.
Foxconn CZ has about 2,500 employees, and last year the firm's manufacturing plant in Pardubice produced over two million computers. Its CZK 37 billion in sales place it among the largest firms in the country. "In the beginning people were skeptical towards us, thanks to bad experiences with other investors, who failed to live up to what was expected of them. We invested not only in our production facility and employee education, we also got involved in the daily life of the local community," remarks the director. He also managed to convince the local citizenry that he won't close up shop after two profitable years and move on somewhere else.
The payoff for his efforts was unexpectedly high productivity from a highly flexible Czech staff. Chang's only problems could be the occasional abuse of sick days and cumbersome customs procedures that make it difficult to clear large quantities of goods. Despite all the obstacles, he believes in the positive development of business-friendly behavior by the government, and he hopes that in the future the Czech Republic will be Foxconn's Europe-wide center of operations.

	Photo: Libuše Rudinská

Petr Beneš: To a ragtime rhythm
SINCE 1 APRIL 2003, the Českomoravský penzijní fond has been under the management of Petr Beneš, who became the chairman of the board and the general director of the institution, which controls 12% of the market, placing it among the top five domestic pension funds. Besides managing ČMPF, he is also responsible for the ČSOB Penzijní fond. At just 28 years of age this former analyst from Patria Finance in Prague, which has groomed many talented individuals, has reached a position sought out by managers as much as one generation older. "I don't have any recipe for success, I think that people who are prepared enjoy good fortune," he says. Over the last five years, this economist has climbed the career ladder, from board member of Česká spořitelna's pension fund, leading the asset management section, to the post of deputy general director of První investiční společnost.
His concept, which will result in a new strategy, should help increase the number of the fund's clients, with great emphasis on the younger generation. "The state's pension policy has failed to take into account today's unfavorable demographic situation, so it's very important for young people to actively arrange their own supplementary pension insurance," says Beneš, indirectly confirming warnings from OECD that a collapse of the state's pension system is imminent. He is also drawn to the field of supplementary pension insurance because in the future many changes associated with EU accession can be expected. "It's a dynamic sector that requires dynamic measures," he says, adding that his main priorities are, "client, shareholder, and employee satisfaction." He is about to complete the MBA program at Durham University in England, to improve his leadership skills. But he sees a good balance between work and relaxation as essential, so he hasn't given up sports or playing his Petroff piano, which his wife gave him as a wedding present. "Playing ragtime clears my mind," he explains.